Broadway singer/songwriter/actor/dancer Matthew Morrison ("Glee") poses with Orange County School of the Arts students during rehearsal at his alma mater. They will perform for the school's 30th year season premiere concert at the Balboa Bay Club on Saturday. (Photo by Cindy Yamanaka, Orange County Register/SCNG)

Broadway singer/songwriter/actor/dancer Matthew Morrison, right, and friend Brad Ellis go over the music during rehearsal at OCSA in Santa Ana. (Photo by Cindy Yamanaka, Orange County Register/SCNG)

Broadway singer/songwriter/actor/dancer Matthew Morrison, left, shares a laugh with friend Brad Ellis who he worked with on the set of Glee. Ellis played the piano during rehearsal at OCSA. (Photo by Cindy Yamanaka, Orange County Register/SCNG)

Broadway singer/songwriter/actor/dancer Matthew Morrison (Glee) looks at the photographers while rehearsing at the Santa Ana Orange County School of the Arts (OCSA) students. The alum and students will performance for the school's 30th year season premiere concert at the Balboa Bay Club on Saturday. (Photo by Cindy Yamanaka, Orange County Register/SCNG)

Broadway singer/songwriter/actor/dancer Matthew Morrison (Glee) and OCSA performers take the stage at Balboa Bay Resort kicking off a year-long celebration of the school's 30th anniversary. (Photo by Cindy Yamanaka, Orange County Register/SCNG)

The students who will be performing with alum Matthew Morrison are part of OCSA's MONTAGE! performing group which consists of singers, dancers, musicians and actors in grades 7-12 who are accepted by audition. Matthew Morrison (Glee) is known for giving back to the community and his down-to-earth quality, according to faculty.(Photo by Cindy Yamanaka, Orange County Register/SCNG)

Matthew Morrison (Glee) credits Orange County School of the Arts (OCSA) training here as incomparable and the cornerstone of his very successful career.(Photo by Cindy Yamanaka, Orange County Register/SCNG)

Matthew Morrison, OCSA class of 1997, moves during rehearsal at the performing arts Santa Ana school. He and 40 OCHA students, background, will performance at the Balboa Bay Club on Saturday. (Photo by Cindy Yamanaka, Orange County Register/SCNG)

Matthew Morrison, OCSA class of 1997, explains that he was born in the wrong time. The multi-talented singer/songwriter/actor/ dancer loves the old days of song and dance performing. He is known for his acting roles as Link Larkin in the original Broadway cast of “Hairspray” and Will Schuester in the six-series run of “Glee” on Fox. (Photo by Cindy Yamanaka, Orange County Register/SCNG)

Matthew Morrison (“Glee”) takes center stage during rehearsal with OCSA students at the Santa Ana school. Two decades ago he was in his senior year at the performing arts high school. The singer/songwriter/actor/dancer and students will participate in the school's 30th year season premiere concert at the Balboa Bay Club on Saturday. (Photo by Cindy Yamanaka, Orange County Register/SCNG)

Matthew Morrison ("Glee") playfully tries to tip this OCSA student off balance during rehearsal at his Santa Ana alma mater. Morrison and students will perform for the school's 30th year season premiere concert at the Balboa Bay Club on Saturday. (Photo by Cindy Yamanaka, Orange County Register/SCNG)

Broadway singer/songwriter/actor/dancer Matthew Morrison (Glee) will take center stage with Orange County School of the Arts (OCSA) at the school's 30th year season premiere concert Saturday. (Photo by Cindy Yamanaka, Orange County Register/SCNG)

SANTA ANA – Twenty years ago, a teenage boy named Matt was starting his senior year at a performing arts high school near his family home in Cypress. Today, that self-proclaimed “theater kid” has thousands of on-stage and on-screen performances under his belt, as well as Tony, Emmy, and Golden Globe Award nominations.

Matthew Morrison, Orange County School of the Arts (OCSA) class of 1997, is a Broadway and television actor known for his roles as Link Larkin in the original Broadway cast of “Hairspray” and Will Schuester in the six-years run of “Glee” on Fox.

But before all that, Morrison was an OCSA student just like the 40 student artists who will perform with him on Saturday.

“I would be nothing if I hadn’t come to this school,” Morrison said. “I always tell these kids, ‘I was you.’ The training here (at OCSA) was incomparable. It’s the cornerstone of my career.”

When Morrison and the OCSA performers take the stage at Balboa Bay Resort this weekend, they will kick off a year-long celebration of the school’s 30th anniversary. The sold-out beachfront concert will take place in front of more than 300 guests at sundown and include a medley of songs that Morrison has performed throughout his career.

“When I first heard about this, I was in complete shock,” said junior Raquel Glasser. “I know (Morrison) from watching ‘Glee’ on T.V. and I’ll probably be shaking with excitement when we perform.”

Glasser, who is part of the Commercial Dance Conservatory program at OCSA will perform a dance to “Singing in the Rain” with Morrison and her classmate, junior Makayla Gordon.

“OCSA has always been a dream come true and the teachers here always encourage us to go after what we want,” Glasser said. “Matthew Morrison is an excellent example of that.”

The faculty and staff at OCSA seeks to prepare students academically for higher education, while also training aspiring artists to pursue a profession in the arts. Their guidance has helped support artists such as Susan Egan (class of 1988) and recent Netflix sensation Justice Smith (class of 2013) in their creative endeavors.

Morrison, who during his early years of high school thought maybe he should be a soccer player instead of an actor, was encouraged by OCSA’s president and executive director Ralph Opacic to strongly consider a performance career.

And so far, it seems to have been a good choice, Morrison said.

“It’s important to have places like this that nurture talent and let it grow,” said Morrison. “It’s not just technical training, there is a confidence that they instill in you. I mean, I don’t think I could have moved to New York City at 18 years old without that confidence.”

“Pure Imagination,” which is part of the school’s theme for the 30th year, means teachers and students alike should “think big,” Peca said. “Big” like performing with stars as well-known as Morrison.

“Coming to OCSA was the best decision I have made in my life,” said senior Jared Machado. “We have a good set of tools, and seeing someone like Matthew Morrison and his career just proves that we can totally do this if we work hard.”

The students said they admire Morrison’s talent and work ethic, but also the fact that he is giving back to the community that got him where he is now.

“His sheer talent is amazing, but he is so nice and down to earth. Honestly, I would love to get anywhere near that,” said Machado. “Opportunities like this make being a part of OCSA so special and the way we keep growing, I know (OCSA) will go way into its 50th anniversary.”

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